Forsberg: Filling out the Celtics roster is a taxing situation originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Should the Celtics sign Player X?
This conversation will occur repeatedly this season, particularly if Boston elects to keep its 15th roster spot vacant entering the 2022-23 season. The Celtics currently have only 12 players signed a month before training camp tips.
The free agent du jour is Carmelo Anthony, this after a report that Boston had considered the veteran forward in the aftermath of Danilo Gallinari’s knee injury.
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It’s important to keep Boston’s luxury tax bill in focus when pondering any potential roster addition.
Boston is already committed to roughly $170 million for 12 roster players. Only Luke Kornet is partially guaranteed (he’s owed $300,000 so far and that jumps to $1.1 million if he makes the opening-night roster). Assuming Kornet sticks, that leaves Boston nearly $20 million over the luxury tax line with an estimated bill of nearly $45 million.
That’s all before signing a 13th and 14th player that will push that total salary commitment even higher. Boston will be paying at least 4.5 times every dollar spent at that tax level.
The NBA will cover a large portion of most veteran contracts for any player signed to a one-year deal, including Anthony. Instead of paying the typical $2.9 million for a 10+ year veteran, Boston would only be on the hook for $1.8 million (or the cost of a 2-year veteran). There is little difference in carrying Anthony as opposed to a younger player.
Here’s the only catch: If any veteran contract the Celtics sign is fully guaranteed, then the player cannot be waived during the season without reverting to the full cost of his contract. For someone like the 38-year-old Anthony, that’s a $2.9 million contract and roughly $13 million in additional luxury tax costs if the team does not otherwise shed salary during the season.
The Celtics must seriously consider their desire to carry any potential addition for the duration of the season, particularly with no easy way to cut costs during the year.
In the instance of Anthony, does his presence become redundant whenever Gallinari is able to return from injury? The two have similar skill sets as both are offensive-minded power forwards who are lacking on the defensive end. Does it benefit Boston to carry two of those players for the duration of the season when it would be difficult to generate consistent minutes for both when the roster is at full health? Even at his advanced age, Anthony played 26 minutes per game in 69 appearances last season for the Lakers.
If the Celtics are worried about Gallinari’s ability to return quickly from his meniscus tear, there should be stronger consideration for Anthony, or any other available player that can fill a depth role.
The Celtics may prefer to evaluate their roster when training camp opens in late September before making any decisions. Even without Gallinari, the team has a proven nine-man rotation in the starting 5 of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Robert Williams, Marcus Smart, and Al Horford; along with newcomer Malcolm Brogdon, and returning rotation players in Derrick White, Grant Williams, and Payton Pritchard. Sam Hauser could get more of a look after elevating to the parent roster while Kornet will get a chance to cement himself as a serviceable depth big.
JD Davison and Mfiondu Kabengele are inked to 2-way deals. Davison could elevate to the parent roster and limit the team’s tax burden as a recent draftee. The Celtics will bring former NBA first-round picks Bruno Caboclo and Noah Vonleh to camp to compete for roster spots.
But with a heavy commitment to the top of its roster, Boston has to carefully examine how it spends every other dollar to fill out its bench.